VW and BMW gearing up

DETROIT: Volkswagen and BMW are the favorites to add market share in the global car industry over the next five years, according to a survey of top executives released yesterday.

Toyota saw a big rebound in its standing, and while the combination of Hyundai and its Kia affiliate still ranked fourth, the number of executives who felt they will gain market share declined, according to the survey conducted by advisory firm KPMG.

VW topped the list for the third consecutive year, and the percentage of executives who believe the German carmaker will gain market share globally jumped 11 points to 81 percent, according to KPMG. BMW was second at 70 percent, up seven points from last year’s survey.

“VW has been No 1 for the last three years, but to continue and to have an 11-point increase, I was taken aback by it,” said Gary Silberg, national car industry leader for KPMG.

Toyota, which suffered a hit to its image when it recalled nearly 19 million cars globally from 2009 through early 2011, showed the biggest gain, KPMG said. It finished third at 68 percent, up from 44 percent last year.

Hyundai and Kia finished at 61 percent, down two points from last year and 11 points below its score in 2011, KPMG said. Nissan was fifth at 50 percent, followed by Ford and General Motors, each at 44 percent. In 2010, only 13 percent of those polled thought GM would increase its market share.

Fiat and its Chrysler unit ranked ninth at 37 percent, in between Daimler (41 percent) and Honda ( 34 percent), KPMG said. The brands most often predicted to lose market share included Fuji Heavy Industries’ Subaru, Mitsubishi, Mazda and Suzuki.

When including newer emerging brands, KPMG said the top 10 would include four Chinese carmakers: BAIC Group (No 3), SAIC Motor (No 6), FAW Group (No 7) and Geely (No 8), as well as India’s Tata (No 10). – Reuters